This Startup is helping buildings all over the world prepare for “The Revolution Of Energy Storage”

In the wake of Canada’s new federal budget that prioritizes climate action and a green economy, energy storage has the potential to shine as a key solution in reducing GHG emissions and making the most out of the energy we generate. Canadian companies like Clean Energy Zone’s startup TROES (external link)  (stands for “The Revolution Of Energy Storage”) are working toward developing unique battery energy storage technology that can revolutionize how commercial, institutional and industrial buildings use electricity. With projects in Canada, the U.K. and the U.S., the company has recently launched units in Nova Scotia that act as a virtual power plant to remotely provide power across different communities that need it during different times of the day. It also received $1 Million in seed round funding (external link)  in March.

CUE sat down with TROES’s CEO Vienna Zhou, Marketing Specialist Christopher Dias and Senior Manager of Marketing John Manalis to learn more about what TROES has done in the three years since they first launched while taking a look into what the future holds in store. Their responses have been edited for clarity. 

What is TROES, and what does the company do?

Christopher: TROES is a battery energy storage systems manufacturer, based in Markham. We specialize in everything about battery energy storage – from developing the systems to designing them to delivering them to our clients. These systems have software and hardware paired together, and we use our own proprietary technology. We currently have two provisional IPs: the one (hardware/software) has to do with the balancing of the battery, and the other (software), is applications optimization related and is currently in the works. In the future, our clients will be able to interact with a dashboard of sorts, and they'll be able to view all the specs and details of their systems. 

How did you get your start?

Christopher: How we started is a funny story. Our CEO, Vienna, was in China for a business meeting. While there, the area experienced a blackout because they had just released new electric vehicles. As so many vehicles were being charged at the same time, the grid collapsed. Vienna, who’s background is in mechanical engineering saw this as an opportunity to create battery energy storage systems to fix this problem. We chose Markham as our home because it is one of the top two technology hubs in Canada. This provides us with opportunities to collaborate with the IBM innovation centre and the ventureLab ecosystems, where we can get more support on technology communication, policy guidance, and resources to work with other industries.

How does battery energy storage work, and why is it good to have?

John: In simple terms, I would say it’s just a rechargeable battery, but for large applications. The concept is more or less the same. You transport energy through time, location and space, and you use it whenever you need it, for the reasons you want; but imagine that the applications here are large, with features like “peak shaving” the electricity demand, i.e. for a manufacturing facility or a commercial building (levelling out the energy used during peak demand hours) and demand management. So, you actually charge our battery during the night at cheap rates, and you discharge it when the rates are high; so you actually use the cheap rate for electricity. This represents big savings.

The batteries are transportable in the sense where you can have it in more than one place; under specific conditions, you can take it and put it wherever you want - given the space limitations. It's not like an electrical substation that takes a lot of time and a lot of money to get through the paperwork bureaucracy. Instead of having all this kind of complexity, you can have the battery instead of a substation. And of course, our batteries can be used for the very common purpose of having a backup during blackouts, which is especially useful when companies need UPS (uninterrupted power supply).

How big of an impact can energy storage have on the environment?

John: One of the popular applications for our batteries is pairing them with renewable energy. You can save the extra energy that you generate from solar or wind or biomass. You contribute greatly– and in a good way – to decarbonisation. In addition, there’s a lot of new importance on buildings to be net-zero now. Buildings may have solar panels, use all these kinds of efficient materials for energy, have sensors for the ACs and everything to regulate energy according to what's happening. And then you have the battery that sustains all these kinds of things, so you usually spend less on electricity. Also, we have to consider the trend and growth of the EV’s (Electric Vehicles), which require EV chargers and they increase the building’s electricity demand; the battery again helps in this area too.

Do you have any international clients?

Vienna: One of our clients is an energy company in the UK. They’re hosting a virtual power plant that is powering a community, remotely, in Nova Scotia. They use a 250kW/500kWh TROES BESS to perform the grid demand response at the client site. The BESS is charged during off-peak hours when electricity is less expensive and not in use. During on-peak hours (typically breakfast and dinner when people cook before and after work) the BESS is discharged and reduces the peak demand that would typically be reached. This results in giant energy and cost savings for our client’s monthly bill. We’re also in discussions about potential projects in Mexico, Israel and the Caribbean. 

The way most of the Caribbean gets its energy is from fossil fuels, specifically from diesel where there is a lot of maintenance and cost involved. What we want to do with our energy storage system, is to either replace the diesel generators entirely or aid them with battery storage. Our solution will help them cut costs, maintenance and overall the environment.

Has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted TROES' plans?

Christopher: The pandemic has accelerated the need for energy storage which has resulted in shorter deadlines for incoming projects. Due to global restrictions impacting transportation and delivery, it has made it difficult to guarantee our competitive delivery times. Being an Energy Storage as a Service (ESaaS) company, we were fortunate to be able to quickly and safely shift our processes digitally. Gone are the days of live networking opportunities and conferences which have been replaced with virtual Zoom calls for now.

Businesses that were impacted by the pandemic had to cut costs any way possible by reducing output, scaling back production, or temporarily shutting down. These businesses are now managing their energy costs in a more effective way by installing energy storage - and we're happy to help reach their goals.

What role does the Centre for Urban Energy play in your hope for the future of TROES?

Vienna: Battery Storage is the future. CUE plays a massive role in the latest R&D of Ontario energy usage, some examples being energy demand data of urban areas and demand limitation of different users in different areas. CUE’s research is invaluable in helping us identify the potential markets and develop the products for different kinds of users.

Vanessa Balintec is the CUE’s marketing and communications assistant. 